When Karlie King was asked to become a Champion for the Creative Kids program she quickly responded “yes”, as she had seen her own children benefit in many ways from artistic activities.

“I think it’s such a wonderful program. I want as many people as possible to know about Creative Kids so they can access the support,” says King, the mother of two and practicing artist. “Giving the gift of creativity to children when they’re young, introduces them not only to an artistic activity that they can carry throughout their life, it develops a great deal of life-long skills as well.”

King knows this from her own experience as a professional artist. Throughout her career she has practiced, pottery, textiles, painting and yarn bombing to name a few. However, it is the experiences that art has given her that she most values, such as being a part of the artistic community. She sees her children gaining from this as well.

King’s children 14-year-old Sophie and 12-year-old Reuben have received support from Creative Kids for eight years.  The support allowed both children to not only find an artistic activity that they each love — dance for Sophie and piano for Reuben — it has added depth in their personalities, as well as, many useful skills.

“The creative process is problem-solving in a really practical way and it’s a very transferable skill to other aspects in life.  Artistic activities use problem-solving to create something in a fun way, whether it’s music or film or dance, to have an idea, or an expression, or emotion, and then travel through the steps to express it in a way that reaches people.”

In each of her children it has also developed friendships, a sense of community, confidence and the ability to follow through something from the start to the end. Most importantly, says King, her children now have a cultural lifeline that they can fall back on.

“When kids are entrenched in an artistic practice – they are able to better handle something that drags them down. When kids are truly engaged in doing something for themselves and loving it, it fulfills their souls. You can actually see the difference in your child before you drop them off at their activity versus when you pick them up. They come out more fulfilled and they let go of that heaviness they might be carrying.”

This is why she is thankful for the support her children have received from Creative Kids.  Sometimes the cost of these programs is a barrier. She wants donors and sponsors to understand the impact they are having.

“Every single penny is being used in such a good way.  It’s such a good investment to have children and youth involved in the arts. It’s an investment in our community’s health.”

Since 2010, Creative Kids has been providing grants to children and youth who face financial barriers to participating in meaningful cultural and creative activities. Over $6.64 million has been granted since it began, helping over 13,672 kids in more than 266 communities across Saskatchewan.

For more information on how to apply for funding, become involved, or to donate to Creative Kids, go to creativekidssask.ca.